Commentary: Someone (or a great number of someones) need to give their
'heads a shake'. The Asian and European financial markets have to be having
a knee-jerk reaction to Saturday's announcement that up to 100 billion euros
will be advanced to Spain's banks. Comments:

first, to the extent at least some of this increase in market prices has
been driven by algorithmic trading, it is worth reflecting on the fact
that computer driven trading is programmatic. Computers (at least so far)
don't 'think', but rather react to the 'human thinking' that has previously
been programmed. The programmed algorithms presumably are continuously
reviewed and 'tweaked', and new ones are written. That said, it isn't likely
much re-programming was done or tweaks made between the time of Saturday's
announcement and last evening's (Eastern Time) Asian market opening;

second, whatever happened to the 'market has priced everything in' theory?
Surely no one, least of all the 'highly sophisticated' financial markets
'money men and women', thought the Eurozone countries were going to let
the Spanish banks, and hence Spain itself, fail! It is increasingly difficult
not to be more than a little facetious when observing the short-term day/day
ups and downs in the world financial markets;

third, to finish the second point, it was painfully obvious before this
past weekend that aid was going to be extended to the Spanish banks, and
hence Spain. That the Eurozone finance ministers were going to meet on
Saturday was known on Friday - for example see (as reported in this Commentary
last Friday) Exclusive:
Spain to request EU bank aid Saturday: sources, Reuters, June 8, 2011,
reading time 4 minutes. So why did the markets react after the fact - particularly
in circumstances where the news released on Saturday arguably was more
negative than it was positive - this because it was announced that Spanish
bank funding would carry no 'austerity conditions' with it; and,

fourth, an important question that 'hangs in the air' unanswered is: Who
makes money and who loses money in financial markets that behave the way
they have behaved in the past few hours? There is always quantum equilibrium
at the end of each trading day between winners and losers. Where do individual
investors fit into this picture - hopefully on the beach enjoying themselves
while they still can.

We have lived for a very long time in the developed countries in a 'magical
time'. Arguably, the magicians all seem to be exiting 'stage left'.

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